March 23, 2026

Cymbeline - Episode 5 - Dream Like That Often

36 minutes

***This show is brought to you by Quince. Go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠http://quince.com/playonpod ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns.***

Belarius and his sons return to their cave to find Imogen feasting on their food. She apologizes and offers to pay for what she’s taken, introducing herself as “Fidele”. Guiderius and Arviragus (who go by the names Polydore and Cadwal) feel an immediate kinship with the stranger and take to calling Imogen their brother. Meanwhile, Cloten, dressed in Posthumus’s clothing, makes his way through the wilderness towards Milford Haven. Later, Belarius and his boys set out for another hunt. Imogen, feeling ill, stays behind and drinks the potion Pisanio gave her thinking it will make her feel better. Out on the hunt, Belarius and his sons see Cloten. Belarius and Arviragus run ahead to find out if he’s alone. When Guiderius comes forward, Cloten challenges him to a duel. Guiderius cuts off Cloten’s head and returns to his brother and father, who recognizes Cloten’s face and laments that they’re in big trouble. The boys disregard their father’s concern and go triumphantly to wake Fidele, only to find the disguised Imogen seemingly dead from the potion. Grief-stricken, Belarius and his sons sing a prayer as they lay Imogen in the woods next to Cloten’s headless body, covering them with flowers. Imogen awakens after they’ve departed and sees the headless corpse next to her, dressed in Posthumus’s clothes. Assuming it’s her husband, she realizes she drank a sleeping potion and thinks Pisanio slipped it to her in order to kill Posthumus. She collapses in grief and is later discovered by Caius Lucius and his men. Remembering her disguise, Imogen introduces herself as Fidele. Lucius is impressed and employs her as his page.

The PLAY ON PODCAST SERIES, “CYMBELINE”, was written by WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE and translated into modern English verse by ANDREA THOME. All episodes were directed by RAKESH PALISETTY and are based on the NATIONAL ASIAN AMERICAN THEATRE COMPANY’S stage production directed by STEPHEN BROWN-FRIED. Radio play by CATHERINE EATON.

Executive Producer: MICHAEL GOODFRIEND

This podcast was recorded under a SAG-AFTRA AGREEMENT.

The cast is as follows:

PURVA BEDI as SICILIUS, LORD AND CAIUS LUCIUS

ANNIE FANG as ARVIRAGUS, FRENCHMAN, LADY AND THE WRITER

CHRISTINE TOY JOHNSON as CYMBELINE

ANNA ISHIDA as IACHIMO, ROMAN SOLDIER, AND JAILOR

NAREA KANG as CORNELIUS, MOTHER, SOOTHSAYER, LORD AND MESSENGER

JENNIFER LIM as IMOGEN

KK MOGGIE as POSTHUMUS

MARIA-CHRISTINA OLIVERAS as THE QUEEN AND BELARIUS

SARAH SUZUKI as PHILARIO, GUIDERIUS, AND COMPANION

JEENA YI as CLOTEN AND ROMAN SOLDIER

JULYANA SOELISTYO as PISANIO AND JUPITER

Casting by THE TELSEY OFFICE: KARYN CASL, CSA.

Voice and Text Coach: JULIE FOH

Mix and Sound Design by LINDSAY JONES. Original Music Composition by CAROLINE ENG and LINDSAY JONES, with additional composition, orchestration and arrangement by STEPHEN BROWN-FRIED. Sound engineering and mixing by SADAHARU YAGI. Mix Engineer and Dialogue Editor: LARRY WALSH. Podcast Mastering by GREG CORTEZ at New Monkey Studio. Coordinating Producer: TRANSCEND STREAMING (KYRA BOWIE and LEANNA KEYES).

The Play On Podcast Series “CYMBELINE” is produced by NEXT CHAPTER PODCASTS and is made possible by the generous support of THE HITZ FOUNDATION. Visit NEXTCHAPTERPODCASTS.COM for more about the Play On Podcast Series. Visit PLAYONSHAKESPEARE.ORG for more about Play On Shakespeare.

Subscribe to Play On Premium for ad-free episodes and join our Patreon for exclusive merchandise and early commercial-free releases. Go to nextchapterpodcasts.com for our Bonus Content, where you’ll find interviews with the artists, producers and engineers who brought it all to life. And remember: “FALSEHOOD IS WORSE IN KINGS THAN BEGGARS!”

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